Originally posted by JaguarESPN just said something along the lines of "There was no place to hide from the fans in Auburn Hills." And I would charge that it's just the opposite. What are the fans supposed to do when the players start threatening them?

There's some 45 seconds left in the game and the arena has emptied out to a significant degree. Meanwhile, there's a serious conflict brewing between the two teams on the floor. What do you do? Unless you're a complete moron, you stay put or move away from it. This is not something that a person with any sense should try to get closer to. Instead, you've got idiots coming down to those emptied seats specifically because they see an opportunity to get involved, and you've got people flocking by the tunnel specifically to throw shit at the players.

If you're a member of the media and see a chance to get closer to a developing story, you might have good reason to get in there. Someone on the ESPN team pointed out that the fat dude pounding on Jones may have actually been credentialed, in which case I hope he never works in that or any other town again.

Wallace absolutely should be punished for this. He kept throwing a fit and kept the fracas going, and he kept it going long enough for idiots in the arena to get riled up, come closer to the conflict and involve themselves in it. Had the officials even been able to get a ruling in sideways, Wallace would have been T'd up, thrown out of the game and off the court by then.

I agree that the referees seem to be getting off a tad light. Most people seem to be blaming: Artest or the fans or Ben Wallace or security. The refs (only one of the three apparently was trying to break up the mess) could have prevented it from even getting to that point.

That sounds about right to me. Too bad Artest only wanted a month off, rather than 6+. I assume this means the playoffs are included in "rest of the season" which really sucks. I don't know a ton about the Pacers, but I think it's a safe bet that their season has just taken a serious turn for the worst.

Ending Artest's season does seem a bit harsh to me, but given his past headcase track record, as well as him snapping like he did, you had to figure something like this would happen to him sooner or later.

Remember when Vernon Maxwell attacked a fan in the stands several years ago? He only got 10 games. You have to wonder if they did this to A) make an example out of Ron and/or B) teach him a lesson since it seemed like he didn't take being in the NBA seriously.

A Goldilocks suspension. Artest's is too light (I would've thrown this psycho out of the league, he's had enough chances and he obviously has psychological problems), Wallace and O'Neal's are too harsh and Jackson's is just right.

Agent: Tell you what, sir. From now on, you'll be, uh, Homer Thompson at Terror Lake. Let's just practise a bit, hmm? When I say, "Hello, Mr. Thompson," you'll say, "Hi."Homer: Check.Agent: Hello, Mr. Thompson.Homer: [stares blankly]Agent: Remember now, your name is Homer Thompson.Homer: I gotcha.Agent: Hello, Mr. Thompson.Homer: [stares blankly] [A long time later]Agent: [sighs in frustration] Now, when I say, "Hello, Mr. Thompson," and press down on your foot, you smile and nod.Homer: No problem.Agent: Hello, Mr. Thompson! [stomps on Homer's foot a few times]Homer: [stares blankly then says to other agent] I think he's talking to you.....

The question I have regarding Mad Max vs. Artest is their previous records; was Maxwell's stupid move as bad as Artest's? Yes, but Maxwell went after one person. Artest allegedly hit more than one person, and I would assume some of them didn't even throw the cup.

I think the suspensions were right; it's Stern's wake-up call to the league that this won't be tolerated. At the same time, however, I'm completely against idiot fans that should know better, and they should be punished (i.e. Ligue, et. al.) to the fullest letter of the law. Buying a ticket to a professional and/or minor sports game does not give you the signed contract to be a dumbass.

GURU : OK, I'm not following this extremely closely, but shouldn't the fan in the stands be pressing assault charges against Artest?

Nope

I would think that Artest would be facing prison time and a civil lawsuit - especially if he attacked the wrong guy.

...and nope. The only guilty party here is Stern not having a fucking backbone and defending his players. Rozelle would have (and did). On trial should be the Detroit fans, much more than one or two players...cause it boils down to "one or two fans" that did wrong...you go and crucify a league, you got that to get - ain't Artest's fault that a couple of dickheads wanted to " be the show"...just like it's not his problem when blame hits - yep...it is. Shame. Stern has had the backbone of a goddamn jellyfish for years, so I shouldn't be shocked...but Jesus - people sit and wonder why millionaires have no respect for this cocksucker. Case in Point

I agree with BigBad: Artest is lucky he didn't get a permanent boot. Poorly behaved or no, the fans are the reason the games get played in the first place. And athletes have to trust that fans who misbehave will be dealt with. If Artest hadn't retaliated, the fans who threw things would probably have received some sort of ban from the facility.

Fans can be obnoxious, and they can be stupid. But their hard-earned money represents, ideally, the source of player income. Their presence at the games represents the reason the games are played, ultimately. Artest's disrespect for the fans shows that he cares only about himself, not the fans, not the team, not the league, and not the game.

/tarnish...

Firstly, the only cavassing of users you should be doing is with a heavy tarpaulin, a stack of bricks and a deep stretch of water"-- BOFH speaks the truth about surveys

Does the suspension mean Artest can't play in the All-Star Game, because I'd be shocked if he wasn't voted in. IF the East wasn't wide open before, it is now, as there are only 2 legitimate teams left: Detroit and Miami (and Shaq can always go down at some point).

Originally posted by RYDER FAKINGURU : OK, I'm not following this extremely closely, but shouldn't the fan in the stands be pressing assault charges against Artest?

Nope

I would think that Artest would be facing prison time and a civil lawsuit - especially if he attacked the wrong guy.

...and nope. The only guilty party here is Stern not having a fucking backbone and defending his players. Rozelle would have (and did). On trial should be the Detroit fans, much more than one or two players...cause it boils down to "one or two fans" that did wrong...you go and crucify a league, you got that to get - ain't Artest's fault that a couple of dickheads wanted to " be the show"...just like it's not his problem when blame hits - yep...it is. Shame. Stern has had the backbone of a goddamn jellyfish for years, so I shouldn't be shocked...but Jesus - people sit and wonder why millionaires have no respect for this cocksucker. Case in Point

FLEA

Artest a cup thrown at him. A cup. His reaction was an order of magnitude larger than that which happened to him. If it was a battery, or a bottle, ok. It was a plastic cup. If someone threw a cup of beer on me at a bar, I'd let it go. Perhaps because I'm a weak man, but also because, if you're going to avoid further stupidity, like what happaned in Detroit, SOMEONE has to be the cooler head. Does that mean the fan is innocent? Of course not. But Artest doesn't need to be defended; he went overboard.

On another note, where the hell was arena security when these guys were walking to the tunnel? It seems they got pelted much worse on their way to the locker room.*

*Which raises the question that if it's ok for Artest to go hog-wild after being hit once, would the entire team have been justified, then, to attack everyone in sight? Seems to be the logical extension of Artest's right to "self-defense" in this case.

Edit: Though, perhaps, they could play the next couple games at the Palace without an audience, as happened in a European soccer game a couple weeks back.

Originally posted by RYDER FAKINGURU : OK, I'm not following this extremely closely, but shouldn't the fan in the stands be pressing assault charges against Artest?

Nope

I would think that Artest would be facing prison time and a civil lawsuit - especially if he attacked the wrong guy.

...and nope. The only guilty party here is Stern not having a fucking backbone and defending his players. Rozelle would have (and did). On trial should be the Detroit fans, much more than one or two players...cause it boils down to "one or two fans" that did wrong...you go and crucify a league, you got that to get - ain't Artest's fault that a couple of dickheads wanted to " be the show"...just like it's not his problem when blame hits - yep...it is. Shame. Stern has had the backbone of a goddamn jellyfish for years, so I shouldn't be shocked...but Jesus - people sit and wonder why millionaires have no respect for this cocksucker. Case in Point

FLEA

Its not Sterns job to defend the player. That is the player assocciations job. Stern has to be responsible to his employer's, the owners. The owners want fans to keep coming and filling the seats, you have to show fans with children this will not be tollerated.

if Artest had a pair he would have stood up to Wallace. Instead he showboated on the table until he was hit by a plastic cup. Then he showed how tough he was by picking the smallest guy out of a crowd to assault. and people wonder why the players get no respect form the fans.

Wow...Ben Wallace got off easy on this one. Considering that the situation wouldn't have escalated to the degree it did if it hadn't been for Wallace acting like a baby in the first place, I really would have liked to see him get at least ten games.

ESPN's Stephen A. Smith makes a good point. Artest was provoked into a fight. Stephen Jackson was NOT. He was just throwing punches left and right without provocation. Therefore, Jackson deserves a bigger punishment than Artest. I agree with that logic.

Jermaine O'Neal got it the worst. If some idiot fan rushes the court, you deserve to get slugged. O'Neal should not be punished for that and 25 games was far too harsh.